Creating an instructional video (Pruning Crape Myrtles) Part Two

Before I get to the video itself, I want to share a couple quick thoughts on the making of the video.  Since the impetus for doing this was a class assignment, and this is the first time I've made this type of video and the first time I've posted anything to YouTube, this reflection seems appropriate.  However, if all you care about is learning how to prune your Crape Myrtles, I won't be terribly offended if you skip the next few paragraphs. 

First, I spent a lot of time thinking about the points I wanted to make during the video ahead of time, but I also wanted to appear natural on camera and not read from a script, so there were a few things I forgot as we were filming (I'll fill in the gaps below) and I stumbled over my words a time or two.  We also shot a few takes, on a few different trees, and since each tree was a little bit different some points were stressed less in the final video then they were on other takes.   Overall, however, I'm pretty happy with the information presented. 

Second, I spent a lot of time in my head planning how I wanted the video to look, but not a lot of time sharing that plan with the person who shot the video, my wife.  So there are a few times when I wish the camera was focused a bit more on the tree or the branch I was cutting and a little bit less on me, but I have only myself to blame for that.

Finally, I waited and waited for a day when the sun was out and the weather was warm and the wind was calm (as calm as it ever is in March anyway), and I ended up settling on a great day weather wise.  I forgot, however, that all of the trees I had at my disposal as pruning examples were in fairly close proximity to the road, meaning that there's some car noise here and there.  I tried to pause when cars went by so we could edit that out as much as possible, but I'm not perfect. 

So, I've posted the video below and I hope it gives you a good understanding of how to prune Crape Myrtles.  The main points I want you to take away from the video and these past two blog posts are:

1. Prune to enhance the natural shape of the tree, not to change it.  When you're finished pruning, the tree should like like a neater version of the tree you started with, not a different tree entirely.

2. Remove low growing branches to expose the trunks, and selectively thin the top half of the tree to prevent the canopy from becoming too dense.  Branches that are dead, damaged, crossing one another, or touching one another should be removed.

3. Remove excess trunks early in the tree's life so that it more closely resembles a tree than a bush.  3-5 trunks is ideal.  For older trees, it is not always practical to remove trunks, so you may have to make do with what you've got. 

4. Above all, resist the temptation to hack Crape Myrtles down to the ground year after year as so many people do.  If you haven't already, read my previous post where I outline why Crape Myrtles are so often pruned improperly and how this is harmful. 

Finally, please feel free to leave comments here so I know what other topics you are interested in.  I may not be able to make a video or write a blog for each one, but I can certainly make sure your question answered.  Thanks for reading.